Legitimate And Illegitimate Uses Of Spy Apps

It’s one of the more controversial subjects at the intersection of technology and privacy: Are there any times when so-called spy apps are truly necessary? For those who might not be aware of how they work, spy apps are utilized when one person wants to track the behavior and activity of another. To do this, the person doing the spying downloads the app on another person’s phone without their knowledge. Once that occurs, all activities on that phone, as well as the user’s location, can be accessed by the app purchaser.

It is obvious how such an app can be used for nefarious purposes. The real concern is someone somehow getting hold of a stranger’s cell phone and putting on the app. Even when the person being spied upon is known to the spider, the questions of privacy are obvious. The makers of these apps generally market them to parents who are worried about their kids. But it’s also a way for people to keep an eye on their significant others to see if there is anything sneaky going on behind their backs.

If you do decide you absolutely need such an app, the Snapchat spy will deliver the results that you require. If on the other hand, you’re up in the air about it, you should consider the times when such an app might be genuinely helpful and when it could indeed be an unwarranted invasion of privacy.

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Parents And Kids

In terms of parents using an app to spy on their kids’ cell phone usage and online behavior, there’s not much difference between that and a parent looking in the kids’ closets to see if they’re hiding anything. Most would agree that parents have that prerogative as a way of either protecting their kids against something negative befalling them or making sure they’re not indulging in any harmful or inappropriate behavior. It’s understandable that most of these apps are marketed towards parents.

Bosses And Employees

If you own or run a company, it’s understandable that you wish to protect it. If your company is in the habit of issuing cell phones to employees for work usage, it seems reasonable to make sure that those phones are being used in the correct manner. The company itself could be held responsible if a work cell phone is being misused in some illicit or even criminal manner. Again, it seems that such spy apps are warranted in these cases.

Catching Cheaters

The real gray area comes when spy apps are used by people to catch cheating spouses or lovers. The argument against it is that you are invading the privacy of an adult who may not be doing anything criminal. In addition, any relationship where the mistrust is so strong that one person needs to digitally spy on the other is probably not one that has much chance of sustaining anyway.

Spy apps are useful in some situations, for sure. As a last resort in at least the first two situations mentioned above, their benefits seem to outweigh the privacy.